Upon moving to San Francisco from New York City in 1972, forty year old Harvey Milk gains focus in his life as a gay activist in the citys Castro district. Gay rights activism turns to political activism as Milk decides he can be a more effective voice for the gay community as a politician, elected or not. Through several elections and losses both for a city seat and a state assembly seat, Milk becomes the first openly gay man in the United States to be elected to political office when he wins a San Francisco supervisor seat in 1977. His many political battlefronts include one with the national anti-gay Save the Children crusade, led and fronted by singer Anita Bryant. Closer to home, Milk has a continuing struggle with his fellow supervisor, Dan White, a staunch social conservative.
Penn is magnificent in the title role with excellent support from James Franco and James Brolin.
Sean Penn is phenomenal in this. He really shows his acting diversity. Historically important true story.
I saw this last night at the Portland premiere with Gus Van Sant andJames Franco among others. This is a powerful work and, in my opinion,Gus Van Sant has taken a big step towards the mainstream in hisartistic direction. To me, the person who is by no means a movieexpert, it seems that this movie had a much faster, accessible pacethan his other movies. There were no long-shots or minutes at a timewithout dialog, etc.I've really never thought much of Sean Penn before, but, with thisrole, I expect him to sweep up the awards. Everyone was great in theirparts, but he did such an excellent job in portraying the Harvey Milkthat I have seen before in clips and documentaries. They did not makeout Milk to be a choir-boy, which was one thing I was afraid was goingto happen. This story seems long overdue in it's telling, but socompletely relevant to today's news.I expect, as the movie hits theaters, this will cause quite a stir,with both sides using it as fodder in their fight. I expect the ratingswill reflect this as there are already people giving it 0's whoobviously did not attend the premiere. I don't think it deserves a 10either, but is much, much closer to that end. Looked at objectively, itis a sometimes tearful, sometimes funny movie that was put togethermasterfully
It was very well done, very very very by-the-book stuff. Some of thephotography was bad, which helps it blend in with the archive stuff, Iknow, but still.The cast was good, though now and again Penn or Hirsch got prettydamned close to parody. But then, so do queens, so...*shrugs*I found myself checking my watch way too often. Milk himself wasn'tvery interesting to me, which basically just left the cause itself, andas much as the story centered on that, there was a serious lack ofurgency. The most moving moment in the entire film is almost thrownaway: a cop refers to a dead man's boyfriend as his "trick"; Milkresponds that he wasn't his "trick," he was his "lover" (or "boyfriend"-- I can't remember the term used). The cop again casually dismissedthe man as the corpse's "trick" and Milk again responds that he wasn'this "trick," he was his "lover"... He's just trying to get through tothe cop the idea that a gay man has humanity and it's sad, horrifying,poignant -- everything the entire film should have been.Too bad. I'm definitely a Van Sant fan, but this wasn't much betterthan good.7.25/10
The best thing about this movie, by far, is Sean Penn. His acting inthis movie is just otherworldly. Diego Luna is sort of annoying in thescenes that he's in. His is a very sensationalistic performance. AndJames Franco as in most (if not all) of his films is great. Josh Brolinalso turns an interesting role. Whether you believe in gay marriage ornot, this film is set at a time when marriage was not the issue, gayswere just blacklisted from jobs and for example, renting apartments.That I think is something that nobody should advocate. And that is amessage that is very effective in this movie. But I think that it'sgood that Sean Penn is the lead actor because he just steals the show.I seriously recommend this movie, for anybody.
Sean Penn gives a meticulously detailed performance as the cagey and charismatic pol, but credit should also go to Dustin Lance Black, whose script squarely locates Milk at the center of his community, his city, and his cause.
This review is from: Milk (DVD) This is a story that truly needs to be told, over and over again. I believe that the combination of historical film footage and dramatic recreation is very well done, and that the human elements of the story are handled with sensitivity and honesty. I had intended to see this movie some time ago, but somehow never did. Then, Kittredge Cherry (author of the wonderful "Jesus in Love" novels that I've reviewed as well) featured Harvey Milk on the anniversary of his death on her Jesus in Love blogspot. By the way, for anyone who has not yet discovered that, I highly recommend it: [...].
An involving portrait of the courage of one man standing up against hatred and bigotry.
Where I in Harvey Milk's shoe's, at some point, when standing on apanel or at a public gathering, I would have expressed the issue ofhomosexuality this way: When we speak of a gay couple, what we arespeaking of are two men or two women that love each other, what they doin the privacy of their own room is not our business, they are adultsand its their business. We often make the mistake of considering themby the sex issue, thereby having a go at two people that love eachother intimately, since when do we dare to have a go against love? Whentwo or more are gathered together in love, there is God. Can we forgetabout the sex part of the issue for a moment? We are dealing with love,the all important.
Sean Penn is "Milk" - Harvey Milk, that is - in this 2008 film directedby Gus van Sant and also starring James Franco, Josh Brolin, VictorGarber, and Alison Pill. The film takes through Milk's life from thetime he hit 40 and "hadn't done anything" until his assassination in1978 at the hands of his angry ex-colleague, Dan White (Brolin) in1978. Mayor George Moscone was also killed by White the same day. Thetrial became famous for the "Twinkie defense" when White's attorneysclaimed he was chemically imbalanced because of eating a lot of junkfood. He only served five years in prison, but two years after beingreleased, he killed himself.Harvey Milk's story is a remarkable and inspiring one, and van Santgives it full breadth here - Milk's commitment and passion to the causeof gay/human rights, his determination despite losing three elections,his quick mind, and his boundless energy. Despite a wave of hateagainst gays moving across the country, he helped to convinceCalifornia voters to defeat Proposition 6, which would have allowed thefiring of gay teachers and school workers.The story remains timely in its reminder of the progress of gay rightsand also its challenges, which are the same as they were then, theopposition of fundamentalist Christians.I was around during this period in history. I well remember AnitaBryant and Dade County, but I admit to not having much idea of what wasgoing on in the rest of the country. It was an eye-opener for someonewho went to music school, pursued a theater career in New York and hadmany gay friends, some of whom were "in the closet." Milk invitedeveryone out of the closet so that people would realize that gays madeup their neighbors, their teachers, their doctors, their friends, etc.He felt it was important to be who you are and to set an example sothat young people wouldn't hate themselves for being different andwould be unafraid of their true identity.The performances are brilliant all the way down the line. I have saidfor some time that while I love Johnny Depp, I consider Sean Penn thegreatest actor in films. He doesn't portray Milk, he inhabits the man.He's likable, sympathetic, courageous, funny, warm, smart, andenergetic as Milk himself must have been to inspire so many people.It's a tour de force. James Franco, in another chameleon performance,is a standout as Harvey's boyfriend Scott.Truly a great film, a great script, an interesting slice of history, asearing performance by Penn. A must see.
Ultimatelt resembles less the man than the titular white liquid -- warm, nourishing, somewhat sleep-inducing
Whether you are heterosexual, homosexual or somewhere in between, Milk is such an inspiring and powerful movie that you should drop everything you are doing right now and instantly head to the theaters.
Visibility is key to Harvey Milk's political and social efforts.
"Milk" is expertly made, rich with humor and poignancy, using a mix of recreated scenes shot in San Francisco and archival footage to give a convincing, panoramic portrait of the city, an era, and the man who changed both.
"Milk" is one of the best films of the last decade. I usually don'tstart my reviews with the conclusion, but this is a point I insist tostart with, to avoid any misunderstanding.Let's get this straight (no pun intended). I assume that most maleviewers would feel uncomfortable while watching scenes of masculineintimacy. In all fairness, I don't think this is a hint of a repressedhomophobia, but more the consequences of a taboo that maintainedheterosexuality as the cinematic norm, reducing homosexuality tostereotypes, indirect foils to the heroes' straightness, or in a fewcases of plot significance, nothing explicitly depicting homosexualintimacy, I mean, just as 'graphic' as the heterosexual treatment.This is why the direction is crucial. Gus Van Sant goes straightforward by showing the most intimate scenes of nudity and impliedsexuality during the first minutes. It's unusual, uneasy, but it'shonest and gives you time to acclimate your eyes, and stop seeing twomen but two persons who love each other together. It's a slow butsignificant progress, making "Milk" one of the most important films ofthe 2000's."Milk" is about both an evolution and a revolution. Told in a flashbacknarrative from Harvey Milk's tape recorded testimony, it's the story ofhis combat that put the gay movement in America's political map. Itstarts with disturbing opening credits, depicting the intolerantAmerica of the 50's-60's, when homosexuals were victims of constantwitch hunts orchestrated by the Police, basically the 'closet' era. Atthe end, while the fight was not over, there was a sense of pride,unity and affirmation of the community as a political force. It startswith Sean Penn an ordinary average-looking Wall Street agent who justturns 40 and complains to his new lover Scotty (James Franco) that henever accomplished anything in his life. At the end, Milk is revered asthe leader, the incarnation, the pioneer and unfortunately, the truemartyr of the LGBT movement in its fight for tolerance and equality ofrights. So many changes in 8 years  "I need a change", says determinedly Harvey to Scotty, before they moveto San Francisco in the iconic Castro district. Milk opens a camerashop then creates the 'Castro Valley Association of Local Merchants',an entity with a growing political influence earning him the title of"Mayor of Castro Street". The film has an undeniable informative valuethat helps you to understand the roots and ascension of the gaymovement. When Milk abandons his hippie look for a more politicallyconvenient appearance, this is a pivotal point. There's a progressivecohesion in the gay movement starting from its core, with ascene-stealing performance from Emile Hirsch as "the so adorable" CleveJones. Gus Van Sant's intimate direction is crucial for two reasons.First, it's an efficient empathy builder: I shared the enthusiasm, theparanoid feeling of the dark deserted streets and sometimes thesurprises, like when Alison Pill as Anne Kronenberg came up, I had thesame "hey, it's a girl!" reaction. The second reason, more serious,implies another female character, the infamous Anita Bryant.I reckon I used to be skeptical regarding the gay movement. For me, onecould say: "I'm a worker, farmer, teacher, mother etc." meaning to bepolitically and socially defined on a productive activity's basis,which excludes sex. But Anita Bryant and the anti-gay policies provedthe fallaciousness of my reasoning. The Proposition 6, from thenotorious homophobic Senator Briggs, totally disregarded homosexuals'privacy, by giving the right to fire gay and lesbian school teachers, adangerous measure that would have normalized homophobia. Proposition 6came at a crucial moment, when Harvey Milk, thanks to the new votingsystem by district, became the first openly gay Supervisor elected to apolitical office. The only response to this attack of privacy was aproud affirmation of this very privacy, as the essence of the gaymovement in reaction to the closet : the symbol of oppression, which inthe best case, allowed 'instutionalized' gay activists just to endorsestraight candidates.And this pride is efficiently conveyed through Dustin Lance Black'sOscar winning script, whose spiciest line, stuck in my memory, isMilk's priceless reply to a remark about men's procreation : "God knowswe're trying". Surrounded, by a great cast of supporting characters,Penn embodies the sincerity and sensitivity of a man with his flaws,his mannerisms, his passion for opera, his touching self-derision andmore than anything, a man of conviction, principles, and alas ofpremonitions. Milk, sadly, foresaw he wouldn't make it to 50, and knewhe would be victim of an insecure person. The rest has been written inbloody letters by history, with Dan White as the pen. Josh Brolin, in adeserved Oscar-nominated performance, is a victim of his ownprejudices, venting his frustration in the most cowardly way, byassassinating the mayor George Moscone and Harvey Milk. Milk who wasnot a political boy-scout either, he defended his interests as a trueleader but whatever White's first intentions were, he proved to be aweak and dangerous man from his reaction while Milk proved to be a goodman from his actions. And the scene of the assassination with thisincredible brief 'no' upset me and I thought "God, what a waste".The powerful last sight of people walking in San Francisco's streetswith candles was a heart-breaking moment. More than a gay activist,more than a political leader, these people were also mourning the lossof a good heart and a free spirit, two qualities illustrated by Penn'ssmile in the movie's poster.And beyond the inspirational story of Milk, the film still speaks forall the oppressed minorities in the world, where the fight fortolerance is not over yet Â
Might Milk have accomplished other miracles had he lived? Got Milk? Wish we still did. At least we have this marvelous film, a slightly ragged valentine beautifully rendered by Gus Van Sant.
Wow. It's maddening to me that the absolute ONLY reason people areraving about this movie is because the man is gay. The acting wasdecent. But that's all it was. It wasn't great. It wasn't something towrite home about. It wasn't any better than any other movie. Now Idon't have homophobia, but i don't think that being gay is enough topush an actor to the stars. You still have to act well. It seems to methat if an actor wants to jump start his career, or just make a strongcomeback, you need to play a homosexual in a movie (think BrokebackMountain, now Milk). Absolutely Sean Penn is an annoying actor in justabout any movie he plays in, but oh man! Watch out for the gaycharacter. He can nail it right? BS. He was still as annoying as he wasin his other films. The only thing that made him in this movie is thathe was playing a gay character. Ridiculous.
This review is from: Milk (DVD) 0) { document.getElementById(nsPrefix + "clipDiv").style.height=h+"px"; document.getElementById(nsPrefix + "videoPlaceholder").style.height=h+"px"; } else { document.getElementById(nsPrefix + "clipDiv").style.height=""; document.getElementById(nsPrefix + "videoPlaceholder").style.height=""; } document.getElementById(nsPrefix + "flashcontent").style.height="100%";}function fp_rewriteDiv(nsPrefix,divName,html){ document.getElementById(nsPrefix + divName).innerHTML=html;}function embeddingPopup(nsPrefix){ alert("placeholder function for embedding code");}--> // Flash Player (version 9.0.115 or higher)'); } } catch(err) { fp_resizePlayerSpace('cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVL', 0, 0); } return false;}function _cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLloadSwf(movieID, playerVersion) { var swfLocation = "http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/am3/20111115154938207/AMPlayer._V163169252_.swf"; var swfWidth = "320"; var swfHeight = "100%"; var flashVersion = "9.0.115"; var bgColor = "#FFFFFF"; var swfParams = {}; var flashParams = {}; var embedAttributes = {}; swfParams.amazonPort = "80"; swfParams.allowFullScreen = "true"; swfParams.telemetrySubPageType = "VideoReview"; swfParams.nsPrefix = "cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVL"; swfParams.locale = "en_US"; swfParams.logUrl = "gp/mpd/l"; swfParams.canResize = "1"; swfParams.autoPlay = "1"; swfParams.sessionId = "179-1130233-7810166"; swfParams.marketplaceID = "ATVPDKIKX0DER"; swfParams.salign = "LT"; swfParams.preset = "detail"; swfParams.mediaObjectId = "m2B4JREFZNGE8F"; swfParams.autoPlayTimer = ""; swfParams.mediaObjectIDList = "m2B4JREFZNGE8F"; swfParams.playIsUserGenerated = "1"; swfParams.enableShare = "0"; swfParams.permUrl = "gp/mpd/permalink"; swfParams.telemetryPageTypeID = "R21Z872Y6Q8J6P"; swfParams.xmlUrl = "http://www.amazon.com/gp/mpd/getplaylist-v2/m2B4JREFZNGE8F/179-1130233-7810166"; swfParams.amazonServer = "www.amazon.com"; swfParams.scale = "noscale"; flashParams.allowFullScreen = "true"; flashParams.salign = "LT"; flashParams.bgcolor = "#FFFFFF"; flashParams.allowScriptAccess = "always"; flashParams.quality = "high"; flashParams.wmode = "transparent"; embedAttributes.title = "Flash Player"; if (movieID){ if (playerVersion == '3'){ swfLocation = "http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/am3/20111115154938207/AMPlayer._V163169252_.swf"; swfParams.mediaObjectIDList = movieID; } else { swfLocation = "http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/am3/legacy/20101014901/AMPlayerProd._V197491872_.swf"; } swfParams.xmlUrl = "http://www.amazon.com/gp/mpd/getplaylist-v2/" + movieID + "/179-1130233-7810166"; flashParams.wmode = "transparent"; swfParams.autoPlay = "1"; } if (document.getElementById('cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLduration')) { document.getElementById('cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLduration').style.display='none'; } cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLloadSwf_Core(swfLocation, swfWidth, swfHeight, flashVersion, bgColor, swfParams, flashParams, embedAttributes); return false;}function cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLloadSwf(movieID, playerVersion) { return _cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLloadSwf(movieID, playerVersion);}// ]]>var cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLRollOverImg = new Image();cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLRollOverImg.src = "http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/91dD24e%2BspS._SX320_PHcustomer-video-vignette_PIvideo-reviews-bottom,BottomLeft,0,43_OU01_PIcustomer-video-play-active,BottomLeft,130,-12_CR0,0,0,0_.png";var cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLpreplay = document.getElementById('cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLpreplayImageId');if (cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLpreplay) { cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLpreplay.onmouseover = function() { cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLpreplay.src = "http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/91dD24e%2BspS._SX320_PHcustomer-video-vignette_PIvideo-reviews-bottom,BottomLeft,0,43_OU01_PIcustomer-video-play-active,BottomLeft,130,-12_CR0,0,0,0_.png"; } cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLpreplay.onmouseout = function() { cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLpreplay.src = "http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/91dD24e%2BspS._SX320_PHcustomer-video-vignette_PIvideo-reviews-bottom,BottomLeft,0,43_OU01_PIcustomer-video-play,BottomLeft,130,-12_CR0,0,0,0_.png"; } var node = cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLpreplay.parentNode; var cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLcurrentClick = node.onclick; node.onclick = function () { var head = document.getElementsByTagName("head"); if (head[0]) { var logTag = document.createElement('script'); logTag.type = "text/javascript"; logTag.src = "/gp/customer-media/du/log.html/ref=cm_ciu_vr_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVL/179-1130233-7810166?ie=UTF8&s=CustomerVideoPlay&p=CustomerImage"; head[0].appendChild(logTag); } if (cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLcurrentClick) { return cv_mo3IFA5VSN8TVVLcurrentClick(); } }} Length:: 1:35 MinsI purchased this milk sometime in June. When I say the "Outside packaging" I'm talking about the plastic thats wrapped around DVDs when you buy them. I have no idea how the cartridge was messed up but not the packaging?? But all and all the DVD plays well, had there been damage to the DVD I would have sent it back. I hope this helps! :)
I honestly don't know where to begin.This is by far the best male ensemble cast, and one of the bestensemble casts in years. Sean Penn is outstanding as Harvey Milk,becoming the character in full, and unrelentingly motions up and downthe emotional spectrum.James Franco is great supporting throughout the movie. I personallyfeel as though the golden globe nom should have been for this asopposed to Pineapple Express, which he also did quite well in I mightadd.Emile Hirsch is outstandingly entertaining, with a very feminine"prick" like demeanor.Diego Luna is equally funny, and manages to play slightly on edge fromthe first scene he's in, pretty damn well.I think this is Gus Van Sant's finest direction. Either the set design,or the way Van Sant manipulated it, was the finest I've seen in quitesome time. Reflections, reflections, reflections...(and the whistleshot...god damn) Sean Penn's flawless, go see this movie.9 out of 10.
Milk isn't a terrible movie--it's not even a bad movie--but it'snowhere near the level of gay masterpiece I hoped it would be. It's aconventional, unambiguous rallying cry with no real impact.Gus Van Sant has done some very original, highly stylized, downrightweird films in the past decade. My Own Private Idaho was Shakespeare'sworld populated by gay prostitutes, with still life sex scenes andsplit screens and over-the-top dialogue; Psycho was a more surreal (andmore scandalous) shot-for-shot replay of the Hitchcock original;Elephant was a hyper-realistic photograph of teenage violence starringno-name high school actors; and so on. His most conventional film wasGood Will Hunting, but that at least was moving and had momentum, aswell as a terrific soundtrack. Milk is just plain standard. Eachcharacter--though based on real people--can be summed up in a simplesentence, such as Emile Hirsch's Cleve Jones, the tenacious queerwho... well, I don't even need a full sentence. That's about it.Sean Penn is convincing and sweet as the 40-year-old New York insuranceman who realizes how boring his life is and decides to head west andmake an impact. He seems to settle on a life of gay political activismsimply because it's the most convenient; the attention, the theatrics,and the social bonding seem almost as important--if not more so--thanthe actual revolution.Which is an interesting idea, but not one that the movie really allowsyou to dwell on. Milk, with its fast-paced biopic structure (here's oneimportant event... then here's another one a year later... then a closefriend dies... and then there's a small triumph... and then...) and itsattention to political activism, wants to be a cry for equality, not acomplex, ambiguous character study. Harvey is reduced to the role ofhero, champion, martyr. You're not allowed to be skeptical of hisbackground, his relationships, his motivation, his manipulativemethods. You know he's the good guy because he's on the side ofequality--the ends justify the means and all that--and so you have toroot for him, and that's that.But I don't enjoy that. I like rooting for villains. I like feelingsorry for the assholes. I like believing, even for just one turbulentmoment, that what the psycho killer is saying makes perfect sense. AndI can't stand a flawless hero. I can't stand being forced to side withsomeone.And as for Harvey Milk as portrayed in this film--well, he just wasn'tthat inspirational. Look, I'm queer and I'm liberal and all of that.It's a subject that's very close to me. Plus, I'm a sucker forinspiration, and I cry several times a year in movie theaters. But hisspeeches and his rallies never made me feel anything other than mildlyinterested on an intellectual level. The bad direction is part ofthat--the cinematography choices were dreadful, with very littlecamera-work standing out as exceptional. With each march and protest, astill camera looks head-on at the faces of the few stars as they marchforward. Why? If we're supposed to be immersed in the riot, to feellike we're a part of it, why would be facing the rioters? Why would webe so still? Why not throw the camera into the action, shakilyfollowing behind the other marchers? But there's none of that.Maybe Van Sant was trying to prove that gay people are just as normaland boring as straight people, that their inspirational biopics can bejust as color-by-numbers and boring as straight biopics. But who wantsto see that? Harvey was loud--"My name is Harvey Milk, and I'm here torecruit you!"--Harvey was theatrical. The gay movement at that timeloved to shout out loud. So why such a stifling story?There's only one aspect of the film that's interesting, and that's therelationship between Harvey Milk and Dan White (Josh Brolin, in a fineperformance), the straight-laced police officer and political rival.Their awkward dance is compelling--Dan "the man" tries to please andwork with, however distantly, his minority colleague, while Harveydesires only to destroy the competitor who represents everything hedetests and opposes. Dan keeps promises that Harvey breaks. Dandrunkenly stumbles in the shadows of his fading conservativebeliefs--beliefs he doesn't even necessarily understand or trustanymore--while Harvey milks up the limelight. It's a sad and scarybattle of wits, and one that paints a dark, political tinge on theotherwise spotless Harvey, but the theme is confined to a few shortscenes and left largely unexplored.As a movie focusing strictly on Dan vs. Harvey, this could have been agood film, but by expanding this into an eight-year-long historicalexamination of how great San Francisco is and how wonderful anddowntrodden gay people always are, the movie strays into the realm ofsimple, sweeping statements. I'm disappointed by how much criticalacclaim this film is getting; aside from Penn and Brolin it's ratherlackluster.Milk d: Gus Van Sant w: Dustin Lance Black (Sean Penn, Josh Brolin)6/10
© 2009-2012 MoviezDir All rights reserved